Not sure where to put this: Potential EE Death Diagnosis

[Sinadrea]

I am having a heck of a week. Just lost my Speckled Sussex 6 week old chick on Monday. Today I come home to my 15 month old Easter Egger dead in the run. She didn't appear to have any injuries.

I am speechless at the moment and know I am doing a terrible chicken rearing job right now! 9 out of 12 left, don't want any more issues this month.

I'm wondering if any of you well seasoned chicken experts would know what she may have died from?

She stopped laying a little bit after my area had a flood in June.(My Polish hen was wiped out immediately by mites at that time) My EE's comb turned pale for weeks and she became lethargic. She never went back to herself. Sometimes she would wheeze but it would go away after a few days.

I have seen a few shell less eggs in my coop and to the best of my knowledge they were hers. I thought she might of had egg drop syndrome but was hoping she would get better.

It seemed that this month she was getting some energy back, she was hunting for bugs in the yard like normal last night but still no solid egg. I saw the ROO mate with her this morning.

I hope I am not making a bad first impression on this site because my mortality record is increasing rapidly but unintentionally.

Thank you for your input!

 

[MysteryChicken]

What's their diet?

 

[Sinadrea]

What's their diet?

Usually layer feed, chicken scratch, and whatever they find in the yard (grass, dandelion, bugs, mulberries are in season) Since we have chicks we have been using chick starter feed instead of layer feed for the past 6 weeks.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I am having a heck of a week. Just lost my Speckled Sussex 6 week old chick on Monday. Today I come home to my 15 month old Easter Egger dead in the run. She didn't appear to have any injuries.

I am speechless at the moment and know I am doing a terrible chicken rearing job right now! 9 out of 12 left, don't want any more issues this month.

I'm wondering if any of you well seasoned chicken experts would know what she may have died from?

She stopped laying a little bit after my area had a flood in June.(My Polish hen was wiped out immediately by mites at that time) My EE's comb turned pale for weeks and she became lethargic. She never went back to herself. Sometimes she would wheeze but it would go away after a few days.

I have seen a few shell less eggs in my coop and to the best of my knowledge they were hers. I thought she might of had egg drop syndrome but was hoping she would get better.

It seemed that this month she was getting some energy back, she was hunting for bugs in the yard like normal last night but still no solid egg. I saw the ROO mate with her this morning.

I hope I am not making a bad first impression on this site because my mortality record is increasing rapidly but unintentionally.

Thank you for your input!

Oh please don't think we are here to criticize or find fault because you're having difficulties. We're here to help, and everyone here has had to deal with similar issues at some point. Chickens are tough but they're also fragile and vulnerable in some ways and sometimes it seems as if they're just going out of their way to find new ways to die. Hang in there, don't be discouraged and we'll try to help.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Are you also providing crushed granite grit for digestion, and crushed oyster shell for calcium, to make good egg shells?

 

[MysteryChicken]

Usually layer feed, chicken scratch, and whatever they find in the yard (grass, dandelion, bugs, mulberries are in season) Since we have chicks we have been using chick starter feed instead of layer feed for the past 6 weeks.

They can actually stay on chick feed as a main feed. Just provide oyster shells on the side for the ladies.

How often do you feed the scratch? That's a treat, & should be no more then 10% of their diet.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

Are you also providing crushed granite grit for digestion, and crushed oyster shell for calcium, to make good egg shells?

Correct me if I'm wrong cause I think this may be a contentious issue (I've gone down a rabbit hole on it here before) but doesn't the layer feed have enough calcium on it's own? I was feeding all-flock for a while and had crushed oyster shell on the side (or egg shell if I had some) but then switched back to layer and they still ate the shells so I have always wondered. I never have high-production breeds and that's why I took them off layer initially.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

have seen a few shell less eggs in my coop and to the best of my knowledge they were hers. I thought she might of had egg drop syndrome but was hoping she would get better.

Normally, yes, if you feed layer formula you don't need to add oyster shell. But you also indicated you were getting some shell-less eggs. So it seemed to me that even with the layer feed, somebody was not getting enough calcium. So I wondered if you were supplementing with oyster shell.

Also I believe you indicated you had switched to all-flock because of the chicks. So you do need to provide calcium in the form of OS for the layers. Non-layers, like molting hens, roosters, chicks and retired layers will ignore it.

 

[Sinadrea]

Oh please don't think we are here to criticize or find fault because you're having difficulties. We're here to help, and everyone here has had to deal with similar issues at some point. Chickens are tough but they're also fragile and vulnerable in some ways and sometimes it seems as if they're just going out of their way to find new ways to die. Hang in there, don't be discouraged and we'll try to help.

Thanks, just feel bad about losing 2 this week. I didn't want people to think I was a serial killer. They seem easier to raise to adulthood but tricky once they get sick

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

Normally, yes, if you feed layer formula you don't need to add oyster shell. But you also indicated you were getting some shell-less eggs. So it seemed to me that even with the layer feed, somebody was not getting enough calcium. So I wondered if you were supplementing with oyster shell.

Also I believe you indicated you had switched to all-flock because of the chicks. So you do need to provide calcium in the form of OS for the layers. Non-layers, like molting hens, roosters, chicks and retired layers will ignore it.

I'm not OP. I wasn't trying to hijack the thread just curious your opinion on the subject since I have been debating how to feed when I get a new flock